From rashes to anxiety, there’s an app for that

Epocrates and Isabel might sound like an exotic couple but don’t be fooled – those are the names of two mobile health software applications in a fast-growing industry that experts say is dramatically changing the world of medicine.

With new apps regularly being developed to help diagnosis a problem, improve patient monitoring and reduce hospital visits, it’s an exciting time for doctors, patients andf others.

“This is real,” said Anne Constantino, president and CEO of Horizon Health Services.

“I like this stuff. It’s fun,” said Dr. Raul Vazquez, who runs the Urban Family Practice on Niagara Street in Buffalo.

Health IT tools and strategies abound, according to the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics, a global organization based in Danbury, Conn. Earlier this fall it issued a report titled “Patient Apps for Improved Healthcare: From Novelty to Mainstream.”

The report took a look at the range of apps available and their functionality via smartphones and tablets.

“An entire continuum of health care needs can be addressed via apps, broadly in two main focus areas for health care organizations across the patient journey,” the institute said.

Indeed, a quick Internet search found apps involving everything from patient registries, risk stratification and automated outreach to telemedicine and remote patient monitoring. Many are free and provide information in the form of text, photos or video.

You name it, there’s an app these days – or there will be soon.

• The aforementioned Epocrates is a drug reference tool for doctors and patients.

• The Early Detection Plan is an app from the National Breast Cancer Foundation designed to remind women to perform self-exams and schedule mammograms . It also provides added information about risk factors and symptoms.

Other apps help people manage their diabetes online, monitor when and how asthmatics use their medication, track and analyze an individual’s heart rate and blood pressure, and even monitor moles on your body.

Such programs can “play a role that leads to lower costs and better outcomes,” said Murray Aitken, executive director of the IMS Institute and co-author of the “Patient Apps” report.

Sharing that forward-thinking approach is Vazquez of the Urban Family Practice. He said he has developed several apps, including the Patient Center Medical Home Tutor and the GBUAHN app, which offers updates on health-related issues, a map of providers and contact numbers, and the ability to fill out screening forms from a smartphone.

“You can actually push out messages and automatic notifications,” he said. “You can let people know about a lot of different things. (For example) ‘we’re going to have a diabetic class on this date.’ We’re using different apps for different purposes. It’s nice to be able to push out information to patients ... it engages the patient differently.”

Here’s what he tells visitors to the Buffalo practice website:

“If you have a skin rash or infection, insect bite, broken bone or anything that can be seen, you can use our app to send a picture to us through the app and we can start to diagnose your ailment and recommend treatment until we can see you in person. You will have instant access to all of our information such as contact info, location info, health tutorials and much more!”

Horizon Health Services, meanwhile, uses a national app called OneHealth in its human services model of care, said Constantino.

“We wrote a grant last year and the Tower Foundation funded this project so we could offer the application free to our clients,” she said. “We can be part of a large group to kind of track the metrics and see how this is being used and what does it contribute.”

Health-related apps are a sign of the times, according to Vazquez and Constantino.

“For two reasons,” she said. “One is consumers needing to be more savvy and more involved in their own care and wellness and recovery in order for it to be successful. And also because there are many people that we serve who are younger; (it’s a) generation of people who use and rely on technology to support them in all kinds of things. That’s the environment and the era we’re living in.”

Technology is “a fascinating end of the health-care system,” she added.

“In order to stay on a behavioral plan that requires you to make changes and have the support you need to make the changes, it’s something that people have to have on them every day. It’s like losing weight or not smoking – the more tools available to them, the more likely they are going to be successful,” Constantino said. “It’s just another tool and another support for people. And it’s instantly available and easy to use.”